Experts commend President Tinubu’s plans for Agriculture

By Mercy Omoike

Some experts have commended the plans outlined in President Bola Tinubu’s inaugural speech on the agriculture sector.

The experts made the commendations in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos.

Prof. Tunji Iyiola, a fellow at the National Agriculture Extension Research Liaison Services (NAERLS), said the plans were admirable if they could be implemented.

According to him, “If commodity boards are reinstated the farmers will be able to bring their produce at the point of harvest and can still sell three months after at a good price.

“The commodity boards, if implemented in this new administration will help regulate the price of agro-produce.

“With commodity boards, farmers bring their produce at harvest time and sell at very reduced price to prevent losses.

“The commodity boards will make farmers earn more as against selling their produce at farm gate prices.

“The commodity boards will have rental spaces where farmers can preserve their produce and sell at good prices post harvest.”

In addition he said, “The promotion of value addition in agro-produce has been on since the days of former Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwunmi Adeshina, in the Agriculture Transformation Agenda.

“With value addition, farmers can earn more from their produce if a little processing is done to the agro-commodities before sales.

“The farmers do not necessarily need to do the processing, but if the value chain line is established farmers can get more on their produce.

“These plans if well articulated, they can enhance the farmers’ earnings. They can also help the farmers delay sales of their produce and earn more,” said Iyiola.

According to him, this will also make prices of agro-produce nearly constant all through the year, if the commodity boards work as they ought to.

“This will also encourage farmers to increase their productivity once they earn more from their efforts.

“We have used commodity boards early post independence and they worked well. It is just that government does not know how to do business.

“The people that should handle the affairs of the boards this time should focus on making profit and not clamouring for government interference in the boards’ operations,” Iyiola said.

On his part, Prof. Kolawole Adebayo of the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, commended the proposed policies as pragmatic and workable.

“The outlined programme of the President Tinubu for agriculture appears very reasonable and pragmatic.

“It is achievable and if implemented Nigeria will be on the path of development in the agriculture sector.

“The importance of commodity exchange boards is such that farmers and other actors in the agriculture space could have some dependable information and price ranges within which they operate.

“Everyone within the price system will now be regulated and agriculture produce price will be stable,” Adebayo said.

(NAN)